Integrate s-s-s-marketing into your organization!

The fact that the sales and marketing departments need to work closely together is no longer news to many people. Both departments focus on attracting new customers and selling products and/or services. Yet, in many companies, that collaboration isn’t going as well as it should. The integration of “smarketing” could very well be the solution.

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Smarketing: The New Collaboration Between Marketing and Sales

‍Inmany companies, sales and marketing operate as two separate departments: they work in different offices, often have their own managers, and both departments report based on their own metrics. This way of working can lead to miscommunications between the two departments—something you’d want to avoid as a company.

That’s why we’d like to introduce “smarketing.” This is an approach in which the sales and marketing departments are integrated. Agreements are made regarding the terminology to be used, the data and KPIs on which reporting is based, and both teams work closely together. In some organizations, the two departments are even housed in the same space. The marketing department involves members of the sales team in developing marketing campaigns, and the marketing team listens in during sales processes.

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Key Takeaways for a Successful Smarketing Business

‍Conflicting interestsbetween sales and marketing can lead to unrest and questions. How do you ensure that marketing and sales support each other as effectively as possible, and what do the departments need from each other to function at their best?

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1. Communication is key

‍Effective communicationbetween sales and marketing is crucial to ultimate sales success. This communication will focus on the fundamentals of marketing campaigns, the solutions being promoted, and the target audience for these solutions and campaigns.

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2. The Correct Transfer

‍Itis important that qualified leads are handed off from marketing to sales at the right time. Contacting a lead too early can be disastrous for the sales process. To prevent this, your organization can establish strict criteria that a lead must meet before it is classified as a qualified lead.

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3. All the information at hand

‍Totake the right next step, it’s important for the sales team to have all the necessary information. Marketing should inform the sales team about, for example, the conversations they’ve already had with a customer and what interests emerged from those conversations. By providing the sales team with the right information about the customer, the sales process runs as efficiently as possible.

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4. Robust reporting

‍Althoughvarious organizations have integrated the term “smarketing” into their business operations, in practice, marketing and sales still tend to operate as two separate teams. To ensure that marketing passes on the right leads to sales, clear reports on set goals are essential. When marketing delivers the right qualified leads that are easy to convert, both teams benefit.

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5. Keep things organized

‍Itcan easily happen that half the sales team is on vacation just when marketing brings in a flood of new leads. The sales team that’s available works their fingers to the bone, but still doesn’t have enough time to handle everything. As a result, promising leads may fall through the cracks—something you obviously want to avoid. By having a clear overview of and insight into the marketing department’s calendar, it becomes clear when to step in to convert leads.

No matter how you look at it, there will always be an interplay between marketing and sales within every organization. By having the two departments collaborate using the same tools and data, they can achieve results faster and more easily. “Smarketing” is all about strong communication, the right (sales) tools, and tremendous determination on both sides. Success guaranteed!

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